Method of securing hair pieces

ABSTRACT

A method of securing hair pieces to cover the bald area of a human scalp in which a plurality of spaced, separate sutures are permanently implanted around the periphery of the bald area, with the opposite ends of each suture extending upwardly from the scalp; fastening means are then secured to the ends of each suture in close adjacency to the scalp in order to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp; the free ends of the suture are then threaded through aligned openings provided in the ribbon or border of the hair piece, and then locking means are secured to the ends of each suture to secure the hair piece to the scalp, said locking means being quickly releasable to permit ready removal of the hair piece from the sutured scalp, when desired.

United States Patent 1191 Kessler 1 1 METHOD OF SECURING HAIR PIECES [75] Inventor: Berton J. Kessler, Coventry, RI.

173] Assignee: Cosmeti-Loc Corporation,

Providence, RI.

[221 Filed: May 7, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 357,807

521 u.s,c| ..132/s3;3/1 51 1m.c|.'-',.... ..A41G 3/00 [451 Sept. 30, 1975 Prinmry Examiner-G. Ev McNeill Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Salter & Michaclson [5 71 ABSTRACT A method of securing hair pieces to cover the bald area of a human scalp in which a plurality of spaced, separate sutures are permanently implanted around the periphery of the bald area, with the opposite ends of each suture extending upwardly from the scalp; fas tening means are then secured to the ends of each suture in close adjacency to the scalp in order to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp; the free ends of the suture are then threaded through aligned openings provided in the ribbon or border of the hair piece, and then locking means are secured to the ends of each suture to secure the hair piece to the scalp, said locking means being quickly releasable to permit ready removal of the hair piece from the sutured scalp, when desired.

6 Claims, 13 Drawing Figures U.S. Patent Se t. 30,1975 sheet 1 on 3,908,674

US. Patent Sept. 30,1975 Sheet 2 01 2 3,908,674

METHOD OF SECURING HAIR PIECES BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to the securement of hair pieces to cover a bald area on the human scalp and is particularly concerned with the type of hair piece that comprises a ribbon-like border which forms the base of the hair piece. Thus, in this type of hair piece, the scalp of the user is covered only by the ribbon-like border, and, of course, the hair carried thereby. Expressed differently, a person wearing a hair piece of this type may actually scratch or otherwise feel his scalp, with the exception of those areas covered by the ribbon-like border, and hence it will be obvious that this type of hair piece promotes maximum comfort to the user and more closely approaches a natural situation.

In the securement of hair pieces of this type to the human scalp, it has been known to suture the scalp and then use the ends of the suture to receive the ribbon or border of the hair piece with some type of securement existing between the suture and the ribbon. Numerous problems have arisen as a result of this type of arrangement, and most particularly, there has been a tendency for the sutures in the scalp to cause irritation and infection. This has resulted because movement of the suture with respect to the scalp would tend to prevent a permanent secure attachment therebetween, thus creating a breeding ground for infection. In addition, relative movement between the suture and the scalp has resulted in a cutting of the scalp by the suture adjacent the areas of the scalp from which the suture extends. In addition, previously known methods for securing or attaching the suture to the ribbon of the hair piece normally involve the presence of some sort of relatively bulky locking means between the scalp and the hairpiece ribbon, and as a result thereof the ribbon does not rest flush on the wearers head but rather is somewhat elevated with respect thereto, thus rendering the hair piece less natural looking.

The present invention overcomes these problems by providing retaining means which may be easily secured to opposite ends of each suture in close adjacency to the scalp to prevent relative movement between the su ture and the scalp, thereby obviating the aforesaid problems which result from such movement. The ribbon or border of the hair piece is provided with eyeleted openings through which the ends of the sutures extend, and then releasable locking means, located above, or on top of, the ribbon or border of the hair piece receive the free ends of the suture in locking engagement, whereby the hair piece is maintained securely attached to the wearers head. The ribbon or border of the hair piece rests flush on the wearers head, with the exception of the aforesaid retaining means secured to the ends of the sutures adjacent the scalp; but since said retaining means are in the nature of extremely thin C-washers, the ribbon or border of the hair piece is not lifted above the scalp to any appreciable extent, if at all, whereby the hair piece lies basically flush on the wearers scalp to promote a more natural appearance. In addition, the locking means which receive the free ends of the sutures may be quickly released, whenever desired, so that the hair piece may be readily and easily removed from the sutures, which may on occasion become desirable to permit dyeing, cleaning or repair of the hair piece.

Thus, the basioobject of this invention is the provision of'a method for attaching a hair piece of the character described to a scalp which is both hygienically and cosmetically advantageous over previously known methods.

Another object is the provision of a method for attaching a hair piece of the character described wherein the hair piece may be quickly detached and removed, when desired.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawings which illustrate the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the present invention:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a persons head prior to performance of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the persons head marked to indicate the proper locations for sutur- FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the head after suturing;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of a portion of the scalp showing one of the implanted sutures with its retaining means secured thereto;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view showing the head with the hair piece positioned thereon, the ends of the sutures extending through the openings in the ribbon;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the ribbon of the hair piece;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the ribbon of the hair piece;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of one of the retaining clips used in the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary view showing the clip of FIG. 8 secured to one of the sutures;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the releasable locking means used in my invention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the locking means of FIG. 10 with the slide members disassembled therefrom;

FIG. 12 is a top plan view of the head with the ribbon of the hair piece attached thereto; and

FIG. 13 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the attachment between one of the sutures and the ribbon of the hair piece.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a persons head 10, the scalp of which has a bald area 12 with the persons natural hair shown at 14. In carrying out the present invention, a hair piece comprising a peripheral ribbon or border 16 is first designed, it being understood that the size and configuration of the ribbon 16 is determined by the size and configuration of the bald spot to be covered. Expressed differently, the hair piece is designed so that the ribbon 16 will rest on the wearers scalp in close adjacency to the periphery of the persons natural hair; and then the ribbon is provided with a plurality of pairs of openings 18, each of which is protected and defined by a stainless steel eyelet 20, see FIGS. 6 and 7. In practice, it has been found that from four to six pairs of openings 18 have proven to be satisfactory, depending upon the size of the bald area, and the openings of each pair are preferably located approximately one inch apart.

In order to properly locate the location of the sutures in the scalp, the ribbon 16, with the eyeleted openings 18 already having been provided therein, is properly positioned on the wearers scalp, and then marks 22 (FIG. 2) are made directly on the scalp by any suitable nontoxic marking means, it being understood that said marks are made to conform to the positioning of the openings 18 in ribbon 16. The next step is to suture the scalp, this being a surgical procedure performed by a physician in which a plurality of sutures 24 are secured to the scalp, as shown in FIG. 4, with the free ends of each suture extending outwardly from the scalp 12. The suture 24 preferably comprises a stainless steel wire core 26 with a nontoxic, inert plastic coating 28 thereover, such as Teflon (FIG. 9). Secured to the outwardly extending ends of each suture 24 in close adjacency to the scalp 12 are retaining clips or discs 30 (FIG. 8) which basically are stainless steel C-shaped washers having a centrally disposed circular opening 32 with a radially extending opening 34 communicating therewith. It will be understood that the circular opening 32 is of lesser diameter than the outer diameter of suture 24, as will be seen most clearly in FIG. 9, whereupon when the disc or washer 30 is forced onto the suture, the former will bitingly engage the latter to effect a secure grip thereon, thus in effect providing a lock washer which maintains the suture 24 against relative movement with respect to the scalp 12. This is of extreme importance, because by preventing relative movement between the suture 24 and the scalp in which the suture is implanted, the suture is permitted to become firmly attached to the scalp, whereby irritation and infection that have traditionally resulted from movement between the suture and the scalp are virtually eliminated, or at least greatly reduced. It will be understood that each suture 24 penetrates the scalp at the precise locations indicated by marks 22; whereby after all of the sutures have been implanted and all of the retaining discs 30 properly positioned, the upwardly extending ends of the sutures will automatically be positioned so as to register with the openings 18 in ribbon 16.

The ribbon or border 16, which it will be understood is of conventional fabric construction, is then positioned on the users scalp with the upwardly extending ends of the sutures 24 extending through the openings 18, as illustrated in FIG. 5. It will be understood that the ribbon or border 16 is sitting on top of the discs 30; but since these clips are extremely thin, the ribbon lies substantially flush on the users head and is not unduly elevated with respect thereto. After the free ends of the sutures 24 have been threaded through the openings 18, as illustrated in FIG. 5, a locking member shown generally at 36 (FIG. is provided for receiving and securing the free ends of the sutures. More specifically, locking member 36 comprises an elongate stainless steel plate or bar 38 having a pair of openings 40 at opposite ends thereof, said openings being spaced apart the same distance as the spacing between the openings 18 in each pair. A pair of stainless steel slide members 42 are adapted to slidably encircle plate 38, it being noted that each slide member has a centrally positioned protruding portion 44 on its top surface defining a channel 46. As will be noted, the bottom legs 48 of each of the members 42 terminate in spaced relation with respect to each other whereby the members 42 may have a certain degree of resilience so as to tightly engage the plate 38 for slidable and frictional movement therealong. It will be understood that one of the locking members 36 is provided for each suture, and, specifically, the opposite ends of each suture are threaded upwardly through the openings 40, after which the ends of the suture are folded inwardly along the top surface of plate 38, and then the slidable mem bers 42 are slid over the plate 38 from opposite ends thereof to clampingly engage and lock the folded-over ends of each suture. Detents or projections 50 are provided on the upper surface of plate 38 to releasably maintain the slide members in locking position, it being understood that the folded-over ends of the sutures 24 will be frietionally received within the channels 46.

If for any reason it is desired to remove the hair piece from the users head, it is simply necessary to slidably disengage the members 42 from the plates 38; whereupon the members 36 may then be lifted upwardly and removed from the ends of the sutures. The hair piece may then be easily removed simply by lifting it upwardly off of the users head and the implanted sutures, the entire removal operation normally taking less than ten minutes. Actually, once the scalp has been sutured as aforedescribed, it takes less than ten minutes to mount and attach the hair piece, as afore described, as contrasted to previously known methods wherein the suture was laboriously tied to the hair piece to effect the desired attachment, etc. Since all metallic parts used in my method are of stainless steel, there is no likelihood of infection due to corrosion or the like; and, as afore stated, the secure attachment of the sutures to the scalp by means of the retaining discs 30 substantially eliminates infection which has heretofore taken place where a scalp has been sutured to attach a hair piece.

As this invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, the present embodiment is therefore illustrative and not restrictive, since the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than by the description preceding them, and all changes that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims or that form their functional as well as conjointly cooperative equivalents, are therefore intended to be embraced by these claims.

What is claimed is:

l. The method of securing a hair piece to a persons scalp comprising the following steps:

A. suturing the scalp with separate sutures at spaced intervals around the periphery of the bald area so that opposite ends of each suture extend outwardly from the scalp and terminate in spaced relation to each other;

B. securing separate fastening means to the free op posite ends of each suture abutting the persons scalp to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp;

C. passing the free ends of each suture through aligned openings in the ribbon of the hair piece; and

D. securing readily detachable locking means to the said suture ends.

2. The method of claim 1 further characterized in that the suture used is a metallic wire having a nontoxic plastic coating secured thereto.

3. The method of claim 2 further characterized in that the step of securing separate fastening means to the free opposite ends of each suture abutting the persons scalp to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp consists of mounting a flat retaining disc on to each end of the suture.

4. The method of claim 1 further characterized in that said detachable locking means comprises an elongate flat bar having openings through which the suture plastic coating. 

1. The method of securing a hair piece to a person''s scalp comprising the following steps: A. suturing the scalp with separate sutures at spaced intervals around the periphery of the bald area so that opposite ends of each suture extend outwardly from the scalp and terminate in spaced relation to each other; B. securing separate fastening means to the free opposite ends of each suture abutting the person''s scalp to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp; C. passing the free ends of each suture through aligned openings in the ribbon of the hair piece; and D. securing readily detachable locking means to the said suture ends.
 2. The method of claim 1 further characterized in that the suture used is a metallic wire having a nontoxic plastic coating secured thereto.
 3. The method of claim 2 further characterized in that the step of securing separate fastening means to the free opposite ends of each suture abutting the person''s scalp to prevent relative movement between the suture and the scalp consists of mounting a flat retaining disc on to each end of the suture.
 4. The method of claim 1 further characterized in that said detachable locking means comprises an elongate flat bar having openings through which the suture ends pass, and means slidably associated with each end of said bar movable between a first position wherein the adjacent suture end is clamped to the bar and a second position wherein the suture end is released to permit removal of the hair piece from the suture.
 5. The method of claim 1 further characterized in that the openings in the ribbon of the hair piece have protective eyelets.
 6. The method of claim 4 further characterized in that the suture used is a metallic wire having a nontoxic plastic coating. 